Orson Welles’ Oscar Award For Best Original Screenplay Name Plate
The name plate of the Oscar awarded to Orson Welles for Best Original Screenplay for his 1941 film "Citizen Kane" is shown at Sotheby's in New York October 12, 2007. The Dax Foundation, a Los Angeles-based non-profit group that supports various educational, health and other groups aiding people and animals, is putting the award to auction, in hopes it could bring $800,000 to $1.2 million. Reuters/Shannon Stapleton

Legendary filmmaker Orson Welles' last film was never released. However, an American production company said the film could be released in 2015.

Welles' unfinished film "The Other Side of the Wind" is often considered to be the most significant unreleased film. The next birthday of the director who gave us "Citizen Kane," considered to be the greatest film ever made by several critics, may turn out to be a blessing for his admirers. Royal Road Entertainment said the film would possibly be released on May 6, 2015, the day the film world would celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of the legend.

The film has been kept under wraps for over four decades as several people including Welles' daughter have been engaged in legal battles over the rights of the film. The 1,083 reels of negatives are kept in a suburb in Paris, the New York Times reported. The film is about the attempt of a maverick film director to make a comeback with a film. Royal Road said it had made a deal with the battling parties. The rights holders include Welles' sole heir and daughter Beatrice Welles, his long-time collaborator Oja Kodar and L'Astrophore, an Iranian–French production company. The film may also be promoted at the American Film Market in Santa Monica in California in November for its distribution.

Author Josh Karp, who wrote a book on the unfinished film, said it was like finding "the Land of Oz or some lost tomb." Karp, whose book will be released in 2015 by St. Martin's Press, said the film had become a myth. "This film is art imitating life and life imitating art. It's become so mythical because of what happened with all the failures to finish it and the players involved," NYT quoted him.

Daily Mail reported Welles had worked on the film for the last 15 years of his lifetime. The film, with a semi-autobiographical undertone by the director, has John Huston as the lead actor. The film was shot in 1971. However, Welles spent the next 14 years of his life editing the film but passed away in 1985. He was able to edit 45 minutes worth of footage. Director Peter Bogdanovich will help finish the editing process.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au